Tawn crossed her arms and asked. “So tell us how you sabotaged your own efforts.”
Bax sat back, throwing her arm up on the back of the bench. “My team detonated sixteen bombs, destroying vital equipment. Twelve Earthers with key skills mysteriously disappeared. Their bodies are out there buried in the desert somewhere. There were a multitude of accidents and spills that slowed progress. Each time we were successful at pinning the blame on incompetent Earthers.
“Look, you have no idea what a tightrope I’ve been walking over there. Every move I made had to have a solid, believable alibi for my people. Since we’ve been there, they’ve only captured one of us, Davo Kostov. He was as true a patriot as I’ve ever known.
“He was chased into a medical lab, where he barricaded himself in, and instead of giving up and allowing himself to be interrogated, he turned on a scanning machine and irradiated his brain for two hours before they gave up negotiations and broke in. He was drooling on himself when they grabbed him. They saw they wouldn’t get anything and instead shoved him out into the sunlight.”
“And of course we have no way to verify any of this,” said Tawn.
Harris replied, “We do have a crashed freighter with a load of titanium scattered over a hundred square kilometers.”
Tawn turned. “And who’s to say that wasn’t done by our people, despite her? She could be using that effort as another cover. And why would you bring her here of all places?”
Harris shook his head. “She doesn’t know where we are.”
Bax laughed. “Midelon? Everyone knows you’re here. They just don’t know how you get here. Both sides have been trying to get to this planet for centuries. How you knuckleheads figured it out is beyond me, but here we are.”
Harris said, “There’s more. Tell them about the Earther plans.”
Bax propped her hands on her knees as she leaned forward. “At this moment they are pushing an asteroid toward Eden. Sometime soon that asteroid will be dropping like a big foot to stomp down on Fireburg. Your rail cannons will likely stop it, but they won’t stop the sabotage against your lone wellhead.
“When that water source stops to deliver, your people will be ready to surrender within hours. Transports back to Domicile will even be offered. The Earthers will take over a fully functioning mine that will be up and running in a few day’s time. Then they’ll be producing enough titanium plates to build one new ship a day. I tell you, for them it’s a dream come true.”
Tawn spat on the deck. “All this time I thought it was our greed that brought this situation about. Turns out it was your stupidity for trusting in the likes of Warmouth. Well, now we’re all sitting in the same pot and the fire underneath is starting to get hot.”
Bax replied, “The way I see it, we probably only have a day to figure out how to stop this. Maybe we ask your talking dog?”
Chapter 24
_______________________
Harris scowled. “We have five smart people sitting here. We have knowledge of the situation. So come on people, let’s kick around some ideas. How do we stop the coming assault on the domes?”
“Seems easy to me,” said Trish. “Get notice to the colonel that they are planning an attack on the wellhead. They stop that and it sounds like this whole thing fails. And if done right they might even be able to round up a bunch of Earther spies.”
Tawn looked up. “I agree. We fly in and signal the colonel. All we have to do is get inside comm range. Leave the message and run before they can get close enough to shoot.”
Gandy nodded. “I like that plan.”
Harris said, “Well then, strap yourselves in. We’re going for a ride.”
“What about Sharvie?” asked Trish.
Harris turned. “Farker, get a message to Sharvie that we should be back in a few hours. Tell her to keep doing whatever it is she’s doing.”
Harris sat in the pilot’s chair. The Bangor lifted and shot up through the atmosphere. After a jump, the stealth ship slowed as they approached Eden.
“They’re all parked in high orbit above Fireburg,” said Tawn. “All we have to do is come in at an angle, blast out our message, and turn away. Simple.”
Harris shook his head. “Look at the comm console. They’re broadcasting interference. We’ll have to go almost to the ground to get a message off.”
Bax stood over their shoulder. “You’ve got a bigger problem. They have the asteroid and it’s already on its way down. See those three blips? That third reflection doesn’t have a signature because it’s just a big rock. Unless you can get that message to the colonel in the next five minutes, you’re too late.”
Harris pushed the throttle full.
Tawn asked, “What are you doing?”
“We can’t get to the surface, but we can get to that capital ship. Sensors show it as the origin of the comm interference.”
Tawn powered up the railgun circuits.
Bax shook her head. “This is suicide.”
Harris glanced over his shoulder. “Unless you want to get tossed around this cabin like a ragdoll, I suggest you strap yourself to one of those benches.”
Tawn said, “We’ll be in range in thirty seconds. They still haven’t see us.”
“Hold your fire until we’re within three. I don’t want to give them time to react. If we can make it in close, unload with both barrels.”
Tawn nodded. “They’ll get everything we can give. What’s our exit plan?”
“Our plan is that you make those first rounds count. I plan on jumping through a wormhole before we smack into them.”
Tawn frowned. “This close to the planet? You sure it will even open?”
“Harris shook his head. We’re about to find out. I’d suggest everyone check your straps. This will get nasty in a hurry if the wormhole doesn’t form.”
“Ten seconds… five… here we go.”
The vibration of the railguns firing reverberated through the ship. As feared, a wormhole wouldn’t form. A multitude of plasma rounds came their way as Harris pulled hard left on the control stick.
The first of the quarter-light-speed tungsten rounds found their mark. The guts of the Earther flagship blasted out through its back side, sending debris in every direction. A message was blasted out to the colonel as the first of the plasma charges struck the Bangor’s hull.
The minor rumbles and shakes of those first hits were soon replaced with violent jolts and concussion waves bouncing around the inside of the small freight shuttle. Harris fought with the control stick as the rest of the Earther fleet unloaded. Systems sparked, smoke beginning to pour from several panels as a hull breach indicator sounded on the pilot’s console.
In an instant the pounding of plasma shots came to an end as the crippled ship gained distance from the fleet.
Harris looked at the nav display. “What’s happening?”
Tawn replied, “The Banshees and our other Zwicker is what’s happening. And I have a comm coming up from the colonel.
“Gruberg. We got ‘em. Stopped just short of the pumphouse. We’re in good shape down here. Get yourself safe.”
Tawn winced. “We just lost a Banshee. And there’s the other. Plasma rounds are coming our way.”
The wormhole generator whirred as a portal to another place in space formed just in front of them. As the portal closed, they opened a second to Midelon, jumping before any Earther ships could pursue.
Harris let out a long sigh. “Everyone OK?”
Tawn powered off the rail circuits. “They sacrificed themselves for us.”
Harris gave a somber reply. “We’d have done the same for them.”
Baxter Rumford unfastened her lap belt. “That’s what I like about you slugs and stumps. You’re hardcore. You can be counted upon to commit and to see that commitment through.”
Harris said, “Let’s get this ship on the ground and get after any needed repairs. The Earthers aren’t gonna just sit still. I’d bet they have a backup plan that’s being p
ut in motion right now.”
The heavily-hammered ship landed. Systems were checked and repairs effected. The worst of the damage was a crack in the hull running halfway across the back of the ship. The Bangor would remain airtight until and unless a major strike by a plasma round swelled and rocked the joints around it. A third of the cabin air had been lost to space during such hits.
Gandy looked it over. “You can barely see it, but it’s there plain as day on the scans. And we don’t have the welders out here to seal that up. We have them at the warehouse, but not here.”
“Sounds like we have a visit to Domicile coming,” said Harris. “Finish up the rest of the fixes and we’ll make a jump.”
Tawn said, “You think they’ll allow us back? That was a capital ship we just took out. Word of that is probably already there. The politicians will be lining up to call for us to be hanged.”
“You have a better way to weld up that crack?”
Tawn shook her head. “Not saying we don’t go, just that we’ll have to watch ourselves while we’re there. Won’t be any registering that we’re visiting this time. Just a sneak in and a sneak out.”
Baxter cut into the conversation. “There’s another option available.”
“And what would that be?” asked Tawn.
“I take your shuttle out there and go get you a welder. I still have a free pass to get on the planet. You… they’ll be looking for.”
Harris said, “I thought you said the DDI would be looking for you now.”
Bax nodded. “They are, or will be. But they gave me the tools I need to move around without being detected. Unless someone physically sees me, they’ll never know Baxter Rumford was there. And I won’t be going to your warehouse. I’m certain it’s being watched. I’ll be going to purchase a welder from a distributor. They won’t ask questions, if only to make a sale.”
Harris chuckled. “And we’re supposed to trust that you will do this without disappearing?”
Bax crossed her arms. “Well, believe it or not I have the best interests of my home at heart. I made a commitment to see this through and I won’t be out-shined by a couple of genetically enhanced nitwits who are stumbling through this whole fight. So yeah, you’ll have to trust that I won’t disappear. Besides… where would I go?”
Harris rubbed the back of his neck in thought. “OK. We’ll do as you suggest. We’ll escort you to Domicile space. You go in, get a welder, and come back. We’ll be waiting where we released you. And if you fail to come back or if anyone else approaches us, know this… Tawn Freely and I will stop at nothing to make sure that bright red head of yours gets separated from that tall thin body.”
Bax smiled. “See. I knew you liked me.”
Tawn stepped forward. “I tried to be your friend once. You treated me like dirt and stabbed me in the back repeatedly.”
Bax laughed. “Stabbed you? Who’s the one who stole my cargo? Did you know the admiral almost had me offed because of that one episode? That’s right. And I had to talk him out of killing you two as well. So don’t be trying to school me on being almost friends. I’ve protected your butts on several occasions. And why’d I do that you ask? Because I… like… you.”
Bax turned away for dramatic effect.
Harris chuckled. “Well, your acting hasn’t improved any. That was worse than some of your prior attempts.”
Bax smiled. “Honest, I’ll get your welder. You two are the only thing keeping me alive and in this fight right now. So if I can help you accomplish your goal of preventing the Great War from returning… use me as you will.”
Half a day later the Bangor and the shuttle were landing at Midelon with the equipment needed for repairs. Trish and Gandy got to immediate work.
Bax sat in the open hatch of the Bangor. “You two gonna tell me the deal on that door into the ground over there?”
Harris shook his head. “Nope. Just forget it exists.”
Bax asked, “So what’s our plan? What do we do from here? How do we stop this?”
“Our current goal is to keep the colonel and the others at Fireburg safe.”
Bax winced. “As long as the Earthers control the space around Eden, whoever is down on that planet will be in danger. Maybe a better plan would be to get the people out, trash those mines, and keep trashing any mines the Earthers try to build. I don’t see any other avenues for us to pursue.”
Tawn walked from behind the ship where the welding was taking place. “Trish says another hour. What are we talking about here?”
“Our options,” replied Bax.
“What’d you come up with?”
“I came up with attacking and destroying the mines. He came up with nothing.”
Harris protested: “You just asked that question thirty seconds ago.”
“Well, tell us what you got.”
Harris stood silently.
“Well?”
“Well… give me a chance to think on it. I’m not some memory bank of solutions always at the ready to spit them out. I need time to evaluate the situation. Mull over possibilities. Think about actions.”
Tawn chuckled. “You got nothing.”
Harris shook his head. “I got nothing. But we don’t need an instant answer. The colonel managed to thwart the asteroid attack. We have time. And we lost three good men back there because we weren’t prepared. I’d rather not do that again.”
The discussion ran on for ninety minutes until Trish and Gandy walked from behind the ship. “Weld’s complete.”
Gandy said, “And it looks good. I don’t think we’ll have any problems. But we did lose our skin color changing abilities over that section. We now have a shiny bright area on the back of the ship.”
Tawn asked, “Can we just spray it flat black?”
Trish nodded. “I have the paint in the shop. Can’t say how long it will last on there though. We do go into some harsh environments.”
“We can only do what we can do. Maybe investigate something more permanent when we get back home.”
Gandy sighed. “Home. It seems like a distant memory now.”
Tawn laughed. “We’ve only been gone a couple days.”
Gandy shook his head. “Not from that. From where we grew up. That life seems like an eternity ago.”
“Well,” said Bax, “if you want to protect it we need ideas. How do we take and secure Eden?”
Farker trotted up, taking a seat on his haunches in front of Bax.
“Maybe the dog has an idea. Tell us what you think, boy.”
Everyone was quiet for several seconds as the mechanical canine looked up with his unusual grin.
Bax said, “Now that’s just creepy. At least say something.”
“It’s a dog,” said Gandy. “It can’t talk.”
Bax scowled at the young mechanic. “Yes it can. I heard it only a short time ago. When Goober first found me.”
“It’s Gruberg,” said Harris “And you must have been hallucinating or something. It’s a simulated dog. Dogs can’t talk.”
Bax crossed her arms, “Oh, I see. Make the newbie sound insane. I heard the dog talk. You heard the dog talk.”
Gandy said, “Farker can take and understand orders, but talking back? That’s ludicrous. We’ve had him for ages now and he doesn’t talk.”
The dog looked up at Harris to shaking head. Permission would not be granted.
“OK, back to the subject at hand. How do we secure Eden?”
“Bax,” Tawn said, “how heavily defended is your mine?”
“Maybe five hundred Marines with plasma rifles. Why?”
“No air defenses?”
Bax shook her head. “None were needed. Who was going to attack with a ship? That would bring the Earthers. There is a destroyer parked over it right now.”
Tawn said, “The Earthers think you went to New Earth. They would have no issue with you coming back, right?”
“I don’t think they expect it, but I suppose not.”
“I think
we can all agree that we aren’t getting anywhere near Fireburg, but maybe we can take out the Rumford Mine.”
“They call it the Tallis Mine, after the emperor,” said Bax. “How you planning to get past the destroyer? They will be watching for an attack.”
Tawn held up her arms, placing one hand behind the other. “The Bangor is slightly smaller than the Fargo. They won’t have issue with the Fargo coming in. We need to get close to that destroyer to make use of our railguns, so we’ll follow you through a wormhole and all the way down through the atmosphere.
“If we come in at a distance from those other ships in stealth mode, they won’t be able to detect us. We can fly straight in right behind the Fargo and blast that destroyer before it has a chance to return fire. After that, we’ll do whatever damage we can to the mine and its facilities.”
“I still have people down there.”
“You think you could land and pick them up?” asked Harris. “You’ll only have a couple minutes before those other ships head our way. Designate a landing spot, and when we start with our destruction, we’ll avoid it.”
Tawn added, “Look, stopping that production is a priority. Your people knew sacrifices would have to be made. You pick any up that you can and we’ll try to give cover while you run. Just know that it won’t be much and it may only last for a few seconds.”
“Give me a few minutes to mull this over. It’s not a bad plan. I just want to have a good chance to rescue our agents.”
The idea was kicked around for another hour before Harris put it to a vote. The vote was unanimous.
Harris looked at Farker. “Send Sharvie a note that we’ll be back. Trish, you and Gandy remain here. No sense in us putting you in jeopardy. If we don’t come back and you need to leave, you only have to convince the hologram to allow it.”
The twins nodded. The message to Sharvie was delivered. A jump was made to retrieve the Fargo.
Chapter 25
_______________________
Harris stood at the airlock as Bax walked through the docking tube. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but good luck down there. I think you’re gonna need it.”
ARMS Harris' Revenge Page 23
